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Illinois Man Accused Of Stomping Puppy To Death

On June 30, Chicago protesters called for “Justice for Cash” outside of the Warren County Courthouse as they awaited a man accused of stomping a puppy to death.

A neighbor saw 24-year-old King Sami kicking and stomping Cash, a pit bull puppy, at Sami’s Monmouth, Illinois, home, in early May, according to Warren County State’s Attorney Chip Algren.

Protestors carried the last picture of Cash, taken about a week before his death, where a Monmouth Small Animal Hospital employee held the pit bull with one hand. Cash was “really sweet and playful,” an employee at the animal hospital told WQAD 8.

Algren noted there was no evidence that Sami was defending or protecting himself or anybody else from the small, friendly puppy.

“How anyone could turn their back on an animal and do the damage they do to them, I will never understand,” protestor Kathy Hutchings, a self-proclaimed animal lover, told WQAD 8. “This animal didn’t deserve this.”

“This puppy can’t speak for himself,” Dan Porter, Western Illinois Animal Rescue’s president said. “He never could and now he is dead. If we don’t stand up for him, who will?”

Demonstrators consider “Justice for Cash” to mean that Sami is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, said Porter, explaining his hope that “we don’t wind up with a plea bargain on this deal.” He told WQAD 8, “Animal cruelty is a felony in Illinois, and if it’s gonna be a felony it should be prosecuted that way.”

Police arrested Sami, an Illinois native and recent Monmouth College graduate, during a routine traffic stop on June 5, after they found that he had an outstanding arrest warrant, reports the Chicago Tribune.

Sami, who did not show up for this court appearance, is expected in court on July 21. He is charged with aggravated cruelty to an animal, a class four felony. He could face up to three years in prison and a fine of $25,000.